Tag Archives: Fatty Arbuckle’s

Fatty Arbuckle’s was one of the largest casual dining chains in Britain during the 1990s.

The first Fatty Arbuckle’s was opened in Plymouth in 1983. The restaurant was co-owned by Pete Shotton (1941 – 2017) and Bill Turner, an old friend from Liverpool. Shotton had been a member of the Quarrymen alongside John Lennon.

The restaurant was modelled on American diners, and had a retro Hollywood theme. It was named after Roscoe “Fatty” Arbuckle, one of America’s most successful silent film actors in the 1910s. There was a focus on large portions (served on 13-inch plates).

A second restaurant was opened in Bournemouth in 1985. After Shotton and Turner met Adrian Lee and his wife, they offered them the job of running the Bournemouth outlet. Within three years, Lee was managing director of Arbuckle’s.

Each new Arbuckle’s outlet proved an immediate success. Franchise outlets were opened from 1991, which allowed the chain to rapidly expand to 22 restaurants by 1995. There were 42 outlets by 1997, and Arbuckle’s was the largest American-style restaurant chain in the UK.

Arbuckle’s, with its focus on beefburgers and steaks, was hit hard when a BSE-epidemic struck Britain in 1996. 70 percent of its sales had been burgers. Pete Shotton sold his majority stake in the business to the turnaround experts, Alchemy Partners, for £5 million.

Arbuckle’s peaked with 58 restaurants by 1999. “Fatty” was dropped from the name in 2000-2001 in order to appeal to health-conscious diners.

After making heavy losses, the company entered receivership in July 2000, with debts of £6.8 million. A majority of the outlets had been heavily loss-making, and were immediately closed down.

The brand and ten outlets were acquired by the Noble House Group, headed by investor Robert Breare, for a rumoured £1 million. The ten outlets were closed down in 2006. Two former managers acquired the rights to the name and opened a revamped Arbuckle’s at Downham Market in Norfolk in 2008.

I visited the Fatty Arbuckle’s at Teesside Park around 1998. The restaurant was fairly tacky and greasy. I had a burger and the food was good enough, if unsophisticated. It was fairly pricey for what it was, but the portions were ridiculously generous.

This sort of thing.

The American style restaurant is still represented in Britain by TGI Friday’s, Frankie & Benny’s and Chiquito (Tex-Mex), but other American-style restaurant chains such as Henry J Bean’s and Old Orleans have closed down.